id: 204565
date: 4/29/2009 5:36
refid: 09ATHENS685
origin: Embassy Athens
classification: CONFIDENTIAL
destination: 09ATHENS657
header:
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ATHENS 000685
SIPDIS
DHS FOR A/S RICHARD BARTH, DR. MARC FREY
AMEMBASSY ANKARA PASS TO AMCONSUL ADANA
AMEMBASSY ASTANA PASS TO USOFFICE ALMATY
AMEMBASSY BERLIN PASS TO AMCONSUL DUSSELDORF
AMEMBASSY BERLIN PASS TO AMCONSUL LEIPZIG
AMEMBASSY BELGRADE PASS TO AMEMBASSY PODGORICA
AMEMBASSY HELSINKI PASS TO AMCONSUL ST PETERSBURG
AMEMBASSY ATHENS PASS TO AMCONSUL THESSALONIKI
AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PASS TO AMCONSUL VLADIVOSTOK
AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PASS TO AMCONSUL YEKATERINBURG
E.O. 12958: DECL: 2019/04/28
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, DHS, CVIS, GR
SUBJECT: VISA WAIVER PROGRAM: A TOP PRIORITY IN U.S.-GREECE BILATERAL
RELATIONS
REF: ATHENS 657
CLASSIFIED BY: Daniel Speckhard, Ambassador, State, AmEmbassy Athens;
REASON: 1.4(B), (D)
1. (C) SUMMARY: Greece's entry into the U.S. Visa Waiver Program
(VWP) is a top priority in U.S.-Greece bilateral relations. As the
U.S. and Greece "reset" relations after several difficult years and
the advent of a new American Administration, Secretary Clinton and
Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis have defined VWP for Greece as a
deliverable in the near future. The Greeks, whose low
visa-overstay rate has qualified them for years for participation
in the VWP, are nationally embarrassed by remaining outside what
other "old" EU-15 countries have long enjoyed. They believe the
previous U.S. Administration "moved the goalposts" on their
application and used delays in VWP to "punish" Greece politically.
At the same time, the GOG has been slow to conclude law-enforcement
cooperation agreements required by the U.S. Greek cooperation with
the U.S. on terrorism and serious crime investigations is
excellent, but the government of PM Karamanlis -- which sits on a
razor-thin Parliamentary majority (151 of 300 seats) -- has been
wary of providing political ammunition to the opposition by
publicizing its close cooperation with the U.S. Despite these
difficulties, we have completed negotiations on the HSPD-6
agreement of terrorist information sharing, and the VWP MOU is
almost finished. The agreement on Preventing and Combating Serious
Crime (PCSC) is the last remaining piece of the puzzle. We hope
the upcoming negotiations in Washington will bring the PCSC close
to completion in preparation for Greece's entry into the VWP
mid-summer. END SUMMARY.
GREECE LONG QUALIFIED FOR VWP...
------
2. (C) In terms of its visa overstay rate, Greece has qualified for
participation in the VWP for years and was provisionally approved
for VWP in 1999. But problems with the physical security and lack
of biometric features of Greek passports kept Greece out of the
2000 entry of the last of the other "old" EU-15 into the program.
Greece subsequently upgraded its passports but then was caught in
the freeze on expansion of the VWP following 9/11. Greece was at
the top of the VWP list when the U.S. re-engaged on the program,
joining the roadmap process in 2005. Secretary Rice formally
requested DHS to invite Greece to apply in August 2007. In
September 2007, DHS Deputy Secretary Jackson told Greek Ambassador
to Washington Mallias that Greece would be the next country into
the VWP. In December 2007, the official DHS assessment team
visited Athens and positively evaluated Greece for the program.
... BUT DELAYS SLOW PROGRESS
------
3. (C) Political and bureaucratic delays, however, slowed Greece's
application. Bush Administration frustration with Greece's veto in
April 2008 of the NATO application of the Republic of Macedonia
over the latter's constitutional name slowed Greece's VWP
consideration. Greece was not amongst the six new European
countries and South Korea that were invited into the VWP in October
2008, a step that was widely interpreted in Greece as political
"punishment."
4. (C) Meanwhile, Greece has had its own delays in signing the
HSPD-6 terrorist information sharing agreement (newly required in
ATHENS 00000685 002 OF 002
the spring of 2008) and the PCSC on criminal data sharing (newly
required in the summer of 2008). GOG cooperation and data sharing
with the FBI and other U.S. agencies on terrorist and criminal
cases is excellent. But the center-right government of PM
Karamanlis, which has a razor-thin Parliamentary majority (151 of
200 seats), has been fearful of providing political ammunition to
the opposition by codifying and publicly acknowledging
counter-terrorism and law-enforcement cooperation with the U.S.
Nevertheless, the U.S. and Greece have completed negotiations on
the HSPD-6, while the VWP MOU is almost finished. We believe the
May 3-5 negotiations in Washington on the PCSC will bring that
final document close to completion as well, paving the way for
Greece's entry to the VWP this summer.
NEW ADMINISTRATION, NEW IMPETUS
------
5. (C) The new Administration in Washington has signaled its desire
to "reset" relations with Greece and has made Greece's entry into
the VWP a top priority. In conjunction with increased Greek
contributions in Afghanistan, completion of Greece's entry into VWP
is the key U.S. deliverable in stage one of the U.S. effort to
reshape U.S.-Greece bilateral relations, moving Greece from a
reluctant to reliable and proactive partner (reftel).
6. (C) Senior Greek officials all have indicated their willingness
to engage seriously, constructively, and expeditiously to complete
the remaining negotiations. The Embassy will continue to push to
make sure they do their part. Without minimizing the serious
issues at stake, we believe that the upcoming PCSC negotiations in
Washington provide an opportunity to move forward quickly on the
last remaining piece of Greece's VWP puzzle.
SPECKHARD
======CABLE ENDS======
id: 200857
date: 4/6/2009 9:42
refid: 09ATHENS497
origin: Embassy Athens
classification: SECRET
destination: 08ATHENS833|09ATHENS471|09SECSTATE25892|09SECSTATE31102
header:
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------header ends ------
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 ATHENS 000497
SIPDIS
AMEMBASSY ANKARA PASS TO AMCONSUL ADANA
AMEMBASSY ASTANA PASS TO USOFFICE ALMATY
AMEMBASSY BERLIN PASS TO AMCONSUL DUSSELDORF
AMEMBASSY BERLIN PASS TO AMCONSUL LEIPZIG
AMEMBASSY BELGRADE PASS TO AMEMBASSY PODGORICA
AMEMBASSY HELSINKI PASS TO AMCONSUL ST PETERSBURG
AMEMBASSY ATHENS PASS TO AMCONSUL THESSALONIKI
AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PASS TO AMCONSUL VLADIVOSTOK
AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PASS TO AMCONSUL YEKATERINBURG
E.O. 12958: DECL: 2019/04/06
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, IR, AF, MOPS, GR
SUBJECT: MFA POSITIVE ON AFGHANISTAN, VISA WAIVER NEGOTIATIONS, POTUS
ENGAGEMENT WITH IRAN
REF: A) SECSTATE 31102, B) ATHENS 471, C) 2008 ATHENS 833, D)
SECSTATE 25892, E) GOODMAN E-MAIL 04/01/2009 ON GTMO MATRIX
CLASSIFIED BY: Daniel Speckhard, Ambassador, State, AmEmbassy Athens;
REASON: 1.4(B), (D)
1. (C) SUMMARY: Ambassador discussed ref A points on Afghanistan
and Pakistan with head of the Foreign Minister's Diplomatic
Cabinet, Ambassador Kostas Chalastanis, noting the issue was not
only a top priority for the U.S. but also a critical one for
Greece, which had recently seen Afghani migrants to Greece reaching
25,000 per year. Chalastanis agreed with this assessment and said
Greece was preparing a set of plus-ups for Afghanistan (ref B).
Chalastanis thought the U.S. idea of a Greek negotiating team going
to Washington to discuss outstanding Visa Waiver issues was a good
idea and said FM Bakoyannis supported it. Greece was positive and
supportive on President Obama's recent offer of engagement with
Iran (ref D). Greece was willing to re-engage on a PSI
shipboarding agreement, but it was "less favorable" than other EU
member-states on forming a common position on GTMO detainees, which
should be dealt with on an "individual" basis. END SUMMARY.
A NEW STRATEGIC RELATIONSHIP
------
2. (C) Ambassador began with an overview of U.S.-Greece relations
going into the NATO and U.S.-EU summits taking place April 3-4 and
April 5. He noted that the advent of the new administration in
Washington provided a strategic opportunity to boost bilateral
relations. It was time to move beyond the issues of Turkey,
Cyprus, and the Macedonia name issue, which were important but had
limited our relations in the past, to a new relationship based on a
broader strategic view of our common interests and concerns.
3. (C) In this regard, Afghanistan - which Ambassador noted was at
the top of President Obama's priorities -- was a prime example of
our broader common interests. Afghanistan was not only about
ending the terrorist threat to the U.S. and Europe but also about
helping Greece deal with the huge influx of Afghani migrants, which
recently have numbered 25,000 per year. Chalastanis said this was
Greece's assessment as well, and he went on to speak briefly about
the plus-ups Greece intended to make to its Afghanistan military
and civilian assistance (ref B).
VISA WAIVER
------
4. (C) Ambassador noted the strong U.S. desire to complete Greece's
entry into the Visa Waiver Program and our desire to get it done as
soon as possible, perhaps by June. Ambassador suggested that a
Greek team be empowered to travel to Washington to negotiate.
Chalastanis said that was a good proposal and that FM Bakoyannis
supported sending a team as soon as possible. (NOTE: Embassy is in
close touch with the MFA lead on VWP, Ioannis Raptakis, and will
press him to assemble a negotiating team very soon. END NOTE.)
5. (C) On the VWP MOU, which has been finalized except for the
section on repatriation, Ambassador noted that Greek insistence
that it not be required to accept for repatriation former nationals
who renounced their citizenship more than 15 years ago was based on
a faulty analogy with the Czech Republic. While we understood the
ATHENS 00000497 002 OF 002
Czech Republic's MOU did include a 15-year limit, that was
justified because the Czech Republic only came into existence as a
distinct entity in the early 1990s; Greece had no such rationale
for a 15-year limit on repatriation. Chalastanis was unaware of
this disagreement but promised to look into it.
IRAN
----
6. (S) Per ref D, Ambassador asked about GOG impressions of the
President's recent offer of engagement to Iran. Chlastanis said
Greece was generally positive on the idea and noted signals from
the Iranians that they wished to have direct contact with the U.S.
He said the Iranians did not want intermediaries (which Greece has
offered to us and, we presume, to the Iranians to be, ref C).
Chalastanis said Greece was hopeful but cautious. He also said he
had no specifics on Greek shipowners' dealings with the Iranians.
PSI SHIPBOARDING AGREEMENT
------
7. (C) Ambassador used mention of the shipowners to segue into
signaling our desire to re-engage on the PSI shipboarding
agreement. Chalastanis said he understood the shipowners had a
problem with the liability provisions of the agreement, though the
MFA was as puzzled as the U.S. as to why they were hung up on this.
He promised to look into restarting negotiations.
GTMO DETAINEES
------
8. (C) In response to Ambassador's question about Greece's position
on the EU common position (ref E), Chalastanis confirmed that
Greece was less favorable than others, though it was willing to
look at the details of cases from the U.S. and hoped the U.S. would
supply a "catalog" of the detainees for EU inspection. Such cases
would then need to be looked at separately, not en masse.
Nevertheless, Chalastanis said the "good will" was there on the
issue.
SPECKHARD
======CABLE ENDS======
id: 189976
date: 2/2/2009 15:32
refid: 09ATHENS141
origin: Embassy Athens
classification: CONFIDENTIAL
destination: 08ATHENS1455|09ATHENS19
header:
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RHMFISS/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY IA WASHINGTON DC
RHMFISS/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
------header ends ------
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ATHENS 000141
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/27/2018
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, KCRM, KTIP, CVIS, KJUS, GR
SUBJECT: NEW JUSTICE MINISTER SIGNS OFF ON U.S.-EU MUTUAL
LEGAL ASSISTANCE AND EXTRADITION AGREEMENTS
REF: A. ATHENS 19
B. 08 ATHENS 1455
ATHENS 00000141 001.2 OF 002
Classified By: Ambassador Daniel V. Speckhard for reasons 1.4(b) & (d).
Summary
------
1. (C) During an introductory call by the Ambassador January
27, new Greek Justice Minister Nikos Dendias confirmed that
he had recently signed out to Parliament a legislative
package for Greek ratification of the U.S.-EU Mutual Legal
Assistance (MLA) and Extradition agreements. Securing
ratification by Greece -- which negotiated the agreements as
EU president in 2003 but is one of four EU members yet to
ratify them -- has been a longstanding goal of the Embassy
(reftels). We understand the parliamentary leadership is
prepared to complete ratification expeditiously, and Dendias
said the government was making plans to deal with anticipated
criticism that the agreements put an undue burden on Gr%%!%QQQ
T(e Ambassador and Dendias !#Q!%$ !* Q(% (%Q!QQa"!e of
completing the requ!Q%EdQQ "%R Q(%V!Q!Taiver Program
(VWP), &$ D$F$!!Q Q!!$ (% QQQdd be happy to provide c#%%%QTAQQQQb Q(QE"QQQ!Qosal for an agreement /" PQ%Q$FQa"! "$QQQ@!%ating Serious Crime (PCSQQ !QQQa" Q!Q) QQ$ but he
could not yet gi"! ! Q)metable for the Greek response.
Dendias and the Ambassador also agreed on importance of
combating trafficking in persons (TIP), and Dendias
acknowledged the need for better data collection in Greek law
enforcement, including on TIP cases. Dendias agreed to look
into the case of a U.S. citizen who had fled to Greece to
avoid criminal sentencing. End Summary.
MLA on the Move
------
2. (C) The Ambassador asked Dendias about a report we had
recently heard that the U.S.-EU MLA and Extradition
agreements were now with Parliament. Dendias confirmed this
news, saying he had approved the legislative package for the
agreements a few days earlier. The Ambassador thanked him
for his efforts. (Note: We have urged Dendias's predecessor
and other Greek officials to move forward on ratification for
at least the past year. It is encouraging that Dendias acted
so quickly after becoming Minister on January 8. Parliament
President Sioufas has told us separately that Parliament was
prepared to move quickly once it received the proposal from
the Justice Ministry. In a January 30 meeting, DCM
reiterated to Sioufas the need to move quickly. End Note.)
3. (C) Himself an MP, Dendias said he thought there might be
some questions in Parliament about whether the agreement is
fair to Greece, because it applies to crimes with a sentence
of one year or more. He said Greek law appears on paper to
have much heavier sentences for crimes than other European
countries, although in practice judges eliminate this
disparity by giving shorter sentences than the law specifies.
Therefore, he said, minor crimes in Greece might fall under
the agreement, while such crimes elsewhere in Europe would
not. Nevertheless, Dendias said the Greek government was
preparing to deal with this argument, and he did not think it
would be a major threat to the agreement.
Visa Waiver Program and Data Sharing
------
4. (C) The Ambassador urged Dendias to provide Greek feedback
on the PCSC agreement on criminal data sharing, noting the
agreement was a major outstanding item for Greece to join
VWP. Dendias said joining VWP would have a huge impact on
Greek public opinion, encouraging a more positive view of the
U.S. as the new U.S. administration gets started. He said
the Greek government was working on its response to the PCSC
proposal, but he could not give a timetable or any feedback
yet. He said the government had to proceed "carefully" in
order to ensure that the agreement has the support to pass
parliament. The Ambassador said it was important for the
public to understand the data sharing accurately -- that it
would be no more invasive of privacy than information credit
card companies or other businesses process on a regular
basis. Dendias agreed and indicated the government wanted to
have a well-prepared roll-out plan.
5. (C) Dendias added that the new U.S. administration was
very popular in Greece, as was the President's announcement
about the closure of Guantanamo prison, and this would make
it easier to get public support in Greece for data sharing
with the U.S. Dendias recalled that he had in the past
defended the U.S. against its critics by citing the U.S.
Supreme Court's ruling that Guantanamo detainees were
eligible for judicial review of their detention. Dendias
said he thought that ruling was very significant, but it was
largely unnoticed by European audiences. He said that the
ATHENS 00000141 002.5 OF 002
SUBJECT: NEW JUQTHAA DHBAQPQQ@AAQP ABF ON U.S.-EU MUTUAL
LEGA@ AQH@PAa
collection on TIP cases was not consistent from year to year.
He urged Dendias to find ways our two countries could work
together to improve implementation of anti-trafficking laws
and to collect meaningful data. Dendias said he "couldn't
agree more" on the importance of fighting TIP, noting that he
had done work on the subject as an MP in the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe. He said he could easily
believe that data collection on TIP had been a problem in the
past, noting that the Greek government and law enforcement
have never been as comfortable with technology as they should
be. He said there was an existing plan for expanded
computerization, but he added -- noting that he found no
Internet connection in his office when he started the job --
that he had his doubts it was being implemented well. He